What is RSS?

RSS (Really Simple Syndication or Rich Site Summary) is a standardized Web feed format used by many people to subscribe to frequently updated content like blog entries, news headlines, and podcasts. RSS allows people to keep track of their favorite Web sites from one place.

Before RSS, users had to bookmark their favorite Web sites in their Web browser and revisit them each time they wanted to check for new content. The problem with this is that it puts all the work on the user. If you keep track of several Web sites, you would have to revisit all of them to see any updated content. And what if a Web site has no new content to view? You end up wasting your time by revisiting the site and seeing the same information again and again. Also, if you happen to forget to check your bookmarks, you miss the latest information.

RSS solves all of these problems. Instead of having to go fetch all of the new content yourself, you can subscribe to RSS feeds and have the latest information delivered to you. And to view all the new content, you’ll only have to go to one place–an RSS feed reader.

There are several RSS feed readers available, each with different features. Some examples include Google Reader, Bloglines, and MyYahoo just to name a few. Some Web browsers, such as FireFox and Internet Explorer 7, come with their own built-in feed readers.

Most of the time you can just click on any Web site’s “subscribe” link, and you’ll be prompted to choose from a list of feed readers. But if you click “subscribe” and see a bunch of Web code, then you’ll need to copy the Web address from your browser’s address bar, go to your feed reader, click your reader’s “add subscription” button, and paste in the Web address to add the subscription.

RSS has certainly made it easier to view information from our favorite Web sites, but keep in mind there are still many sites out there that do not offer their content via RSS feeds; you will have to visit those pages manually.

For more information on RSS, please check the links below. Oh, and don’t forget to subscribe to Back in the Day Show :D


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